QUEENS SILVER JUBILEE REVIEW - FINNINGLEY

[keefyboy]

I find it hard to believe that this was 42 years ago but I remember it like yesterday.  I was lucky enough to attend both the Queens Review on the Friday (famous for the then Defence Secretary Fred Mulley nodding off next to the Queen whilst the Tornado was being put through it's paces) and the public display on the Saturday (when I saw the Ozzie F111 burning fuel and thought he had a problem - we did run as he was low and seemed to be coming towards us).

Anyhow, given that it's the last year for the RAF Tornado, it seems fitting that an early model features in the film.  Also of interest is the massed flypast, a 4 ship Vulcan scramble and the Harrier doing what it does best.  Hope you enjoy:


www.forces.net/news/tri-service/our-archive-royal-air-force-royal-salute-1977

[rh226]

I remember that very well!!

Myself and a pal went up from Reading by train(s) on the Saturday. I remember the queues at (inside) Doncaster station for the frequent special buses out to Finningley - it took us about 1½ hours to get on a bus.  Funnily enough, we got straight on a bus when going back to Doncaster.

The static and hangar displays seemed to be endless and I was quite thankful when we finished and "settled down" for the flypast/displays.  The "torch" rather startled us as well.

There were three squadrons not represented by aircraft - 28 Sqdn (Wessex at Sek Kong), 51 Sqdn (the hush-hush Nimrods at Wyton) and 84 Sqdn (Whirlwinds in Cyprus).  Evidently they must have sent representative personnel and their colours for the Friday "bash".

The Tornado was actually the 3rd prototype (XX948) - which was at Farnborough the year before.

[keefyboy]

A great day Bob. IIRC the 111 had crossed the crowdline and was directly overhead at low level when he was torching. It certainly scared us!

[dave]

hi,
thanks rh226 for getting the old memory whirling, my 3 memories of the Saturday were the queues at Doncaster station seemed miles, every time you turned a corner they stretched into the distance. The F.111 blowtorch very impressive, and lastly the endless rows of different a/c...
At the next review the coronation? it wont take long to do the static...

regards,
dave...

[davebasing]

Thanks Keefyboy & Bob for the memory of a great day blessed with very good weather. I drove north on the Friday via a number of the RAF bases where the flypast aircraft had assembled together with additional air and ground spares, arriving at Linton-on-Ouse to see the return of the Jet Provosts which had flown from there to form the "25" formation. Friday ended quite late with fish & chips in Doncaster and kipping in the car round the back of Finningley to be ready for an early hassle free entry to the show on the Saturday morning. It was pre-digital of course and I actually managed to run out of the rolls of Kodachrome film which I had taken with me, having taken just about everything in the static. Shots below from that trip show the crowded ramp at Linton after the JPs had recovered, plus the Tornado and the dump and burn Australian F111 which you both mention. F111 A8-143 was one of those which ended its days when the Australians sadly buried it and a number of other swingers in a land fill site at Swanbank. I was at Fairford in 93 when the Australians did the dump & burn again and I had told my rather young son to watch that part of its display. He was clearly only marginally impressed but when the two Migs collided later that day in a ball of flame he announced that was much more impressive, without of course realising what had actually just occurred (he got the aviation bug however and now captains B737s).

77-fg by dave tompkins, on Flickr
77-gk by dave tompkins, on Flickr
77-hn by dave tompkins, on Flickr
77-hp by dave tompkins, on Flickr